ROCK FOR LIFE 14 THE GATHERING, THE MUSIC, THE MISSION PART ONE This story begins July 31, 2013. I pulled into my cousin’s house in Pine Run to pick up my mobile office. Western PA Local Music Scene One is a 1997 Coleman Cheyenne popup camper with all of the comforts of home, if you can overlook the lack of a bathroom. I hook it up to the old man’s Trailblazer and off to Iselin Ballfield for a weekend of the best live local music and one hell of a party. Anticipation has been growing for the last 6 months as this is the premier rock festival of the summer in Western Pennsylvania. Memories flood my mind of the last four shows I had the privilege of attending. This one makes number five for me. Matt Ferrante, drummer for After The Fall and Slant Six along with Steve Craven, bassist for the same bands have been putting these soirees together for the last 13 years. This was year 14 and the lineup is absolutely top notch. This included The Molrowers, KGB, 90 Amp Fuse, Slant Six, Rockness Monsters, All My Monsters, Luke Bab, Terry Lee Spencer, Mustache Serkus, Shattered, The Subnormals, Dimwit with Keith Kweder, Ill-Fated, Big House Pete, After The Fall, Skell and our friends from Cleveland, XFACTOR1. The 20 miles from my cousin’s to Iselin passed and miles of cornfields greeted my approach. I expected Malachai to be standing in the corn wielding a hand sickle. I stared out the window and fondly remembered my first Rock For Life show. Not only the music and the partying came to mind but also the huge number of new friends that I made and the feeling that I just joined an extended family. Though slightly dysfunctional and definitely irreverent, this is truly an extended family. I fit right in and they adopted me as one of their own. This annual gathering at Iselin, one of usually three held every summer and early fall raise money for Rock For Life, Inc. and Mooseheart Charities. The group choose one child as a recipient. These children are facing life-threatening illness and their families are facing astronomical medical bills. This year’s recipient, Alicia Hruby is no exception This tough little fighter needs a liver and is facing an autoimmune disorder on top of that. Her parents, Tim and Donna are fantastic people and her sister, Her sister Taylor Rae set up Angels for Alicia on Facebook. Last year’s recipient, Brittani Kemmerer joined her for the weekend. They call themselves “The Liver Sisters”. Brittani received hers in the fall and she is just a bundle of energy and inspiration. We pulled through the main gate at Iselin and a smile crossed my face. I pulled my popup next to my friend Jeff Danka’s RV, a permanent fixture on the ballfield. Others park their RV’s there but mine is too easy to hitch it up to a pickup and drive away. I have no desire to do a 25 to life stretch in a state prison. I began the process of opening the camper and the first to inhabit the field, Cate Fouse and her boyfriend Bob Pratt of 90 Amp Fuse came over to greet us. Unlike the earlier July show Gigaroo I would not be staying Wednesday night. The area I put the camper on is slightly inclined and I leveled it the best I could. I now fully appreciate the Inca building Machu Picchu on a mountainside. Once the camper was set up I returned back to Vandergrift to begin pulling my gear together and packing what would not fit in the camper or required ice to keep cold. Though I imbibed many Yuengling’s at a local watering hole back in Vandergrift, sleep came grudgingly. Thursday dawned bright and early for me and I awoke with a thundering hangover. Instead of feeling lethargic, I practically leapt into action. I gathered my supplies and iced down beer, water and pop. I made my way out to the field with a friend of mine, Juanita Shirey who was seeking to stake a claim on some of the field’s real estate for her camp area. I arrived to find Jeff already hard at work setting up his camper. The Leechburg Moose contingent was there setting up the field. Matt Rizzo and Paul Negrich were out setting up canopies, tables, chairs, garbage cans and the kitchen area where the Moose serves up some mighty fine grub. These volunteers are the unsung heroes of these shows. Without them the shows would just not happen. Beer-thirty arrived soon and I proceeded to partake of the Rolling Rock and some fine Evan Williams whiskey. Well, the term fine is definitely a stretch but I have no time for syrupy sweet booze. Wine is fine, beer is dear but liquor works much quicker. Camps sprung up like mushrooms in a spring rain. They even had names like Brettopia and Kampamungus I officially joined The Corner People for this show. I made my way to the camper bleary-eyed and ready for sleep. Friday came and I rolled my old carcass out of bed and straight onto the floor. I failed to remember that I was in the camper, perched on an incline and not on the top of my game. Cars streamed into the field and more tents, RV’s and campers appeared. This year’s turnout was going to be great and I felt the excitement grow. I wandered the field and greeted old friends and new ones alike. The sound and lighting crew was already swarming the stage. Matt Ferrante, Sam Epolite, Eric Anthony, Strobe Lighting, Steve Craven and Gene Williams began the process of transforming the empty stage into the music powerhouse it becomes. The band area took shape as well. Lisa Hall and Summer Sudy started cooking the food necessary to feed hungry musicians who would soon turn that stage into a rock show to remember. I obtained my Event Pass and I went about the field. Mike’s Graphics was already in full swing printing t-shirts for the evening. One cannot attend these shows without purchasing an event shirt. Since Alicia’s favorite color is green, I went with it. I changed into my shirt, grabbed some cold beers in a small cooler, grabbed my brand new Samsung Galaxy III and headed to the field. I had some difficulties with this phone this weekend as I was unfamiliar with it. I would never take a weapon into combat that I was totally unfamiliar with and this rule applies to a smartphone as well in a setting such as this. I would adapt and overcome. Part Two to follow tomorrow evening.....
Posted on: Tue, 06 Aug 2013 02:33:44 +0000
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